But things seem to be looking up. In a recent article for ARTNews, MIranda notes that museums in the United States might finally be taking Latin American and Latino art seriously. "The fall of 2017," she writes, "will see the launch of 46 exhibitions and events around Southern California devoted to artists and designers of Latin American descent."

This growing attention to Latino and Latin American art is partly due to more Latinos holding key positions in the industry, like Rita Gonzalez, a curator at LACMA — the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Gonzalez curated the critically-acclaimed exhibition Phantom Sightings, the largest Chicano art exhibit ever presented at the museum.

We asked Miranda to give us a rundown of some artists we should be looking out for. She said it was like asking her to choose a favorite child, but she humored us and gave us these recommendations:

Camilo Restrepo

“He creates this absolutely phantasmagoric collages related to the culture of the drug trade, specifically the types of words that the drug trade has sort of made common in our society, like the nicknames, like ‘El Chapo’”, she explains. “The drug war is such a big part of who we are politically as a culture, and he’s covering it from the other side. I want to see his stuff in a museum here in L.A. soon."

Hugo Crosthwaite

This Tijuana native is not just an interesting artist, Miranda says, “he’s an interesting thinker, and I think that’s really important. He told me once: ‘I never had to learn English, I just grew up speaking it because if you live on the border, American culture is your culture and Mexican culture is your culture.’ I think he’s one of those people who is perfectly positioned to sort of ride that divide of cultures, he gets it. He’s got one foot in each.”

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